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I think this is a little unprofessional - if this guy is really a doctor, he should not be arguing politics with his patients.

PCIntern (1000+ posts) Sat Jun-14-08 06:42 PM
Original message
Strange talk with a RW patient and epiphany therefrom:
A couple days ago, a gentleman came to see me for a dental clearance for prosthetic hip surgery. This is required by the orthopedist, for should there be an active, significant dental abscess, the bacteria could take up residence on the new hip and cause a catastrophe. I have treated this man and his family for more than twenty years - he is a retired firefighter and a real physical guy: he has a bone-crushing handshake and looks like he could bench-press 500 pounds or more.

He is also a right-winger of the first order. You all know the type. We get along because he really is a moral man and has a terrific family of honest, hard-working (difficult to use that phrase these days) people. He told me a story.....

I listened to him sympathetically and then he said the magic words with a sneer:

"...and the Clintons were supposed to have FIXED health care!"

It was my turn. I gently said, "but gee, I thought everyone
agreed that they STOPPED the Clintons from 'fixing' health care. I thought it was the major defeat which was acknowledged by everyone to be a big problem for the Clintons and actually led to the eventual downfall of all health care reform in the decade and beyond." I was very nice about it and sort of perplexed, as it were, by his statement. He said absolutely nothing...changed the subject.

And then I realized...when you walk down the street and see the faceless ones, the people with the blank stare headed somewhere, you have to realize at times that the powers-that-be give not one whit for them. They know that they're content with their 'fashion' and their 'sports' and their 'music' and their movies and their TV. They are reliably unexcited and really do not care about issues, morality, wars, mis-counted votes, Supreme Court decisions. until and unless it affects them directly - and I don't mean that in an esoteric sense, I'm referring to direct unabridged contact. And then they get it wrong every time because...as the great Mel Brooks stated in his film Spaceballs: Evil will always win out over Good, because Good is dumb.

And so it goes...most of what we do to change people's minds is tantamount to peeing into the wind, but sometimes, you get through. Please let me know when someone manages...I like to hear success stories.

YankmeCrankme (431 posts) Sun Jun-15-08 08:23 AM
Response to Reply #12
14. I hate to say, but I'm very pessimistic
I don't really see any group at this point. We, as a nation, seem to have bought into the notion that you're on your own. What you get or have should be from your own efforts (a fallacy, as everything is interconnected and no one gets anything on their own). The obvious drawback to this is it is a lot easier for a corporation to defeat each individual rather than a group.

Until Americans truly feel the discomfort of their economical predicament and believe they have the right to forceful and violent confrontation to those that oppress them nothing will happen. I don't know what it is about now compared to 40 or 100 years ago, but there doesn't seem to be the support from the non-active majority to the minority of activists who fight for economic equality. I think the threat of losing a job or not having a job has more impact than the loss of our freedoms or of our government to represent us.

Typical DUmmies. What you get should be from your own efforts - that's the American way! Work hard and enjoy the fruits of your labor. They just want to take what everyone else works hard for, but refuse to work hard themselves.

Typical DUmmies. What you get should be from your own efforts - that's the American way! Work hard and enjoy the fruits of your labor. They just want to take what everyone else works hard for, but refuse to work hard themselves.

This a 1/2 of 1 bouncy. What Dr. in their mind wants socialized meds. I got a statementl for a MRI/ Cat yesterday from Humana and out of 900 dollars the facility charged, Medicare disallowed around 600 and paid a little over 200 leaving me with 60 dollar balance. The government is squeezing Doctors and hospitals for lower costs pretty tight.

This a 1/2 of 1 bouncy. What Dr. in their mind wants socialized meds. I got a statementl for a MRI/ Cat yesterday from Humana and out of 900 dollars the facility charged, Medicare disallowed around 600 and paid a little over 200 leaving me with 60 dollar balance. The government is squeezing Doctors and hospitals for lower costs pretty tight.

That's because doctors are all rich and should provide medical services free of charge.
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